XP Factory Shares Fall as Boom Battle Bar Weighs on Profit

XP Factory Plc (LON: XPF), owner of the Escape Hunt and Boom Battle Bar leisure venue chains, saw its shares fall after reporting final results for the year to 29 March that showed profit sliding despite modest revenue growth.

The stock was indicated down 3.64% at 18.55p in early trade, from Friday’s close of 19.25p, within a 52-week range of 10p to 21p. That leaves the AIM-listed group valued at around £33.8m.

Results published earlier today showed underlying group revenue up 3% to £59.6m from £57.8m a year earlier. But pre-IFRS-16 adjusted EBITDA, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, fell to £5.5m from £6.6m, and adjusted operating profit dropped to £0.8m from £3.4m. The group swung to a statutory operating loss of £0.5m, against a £1.7m profit the year before.

The divisional split explains the gap. Escape Hunt, the group’s puzzle-room brand, grew revenue 11% to £15.8m, with UK like-for-like sales up 4.6% and site-level margins of 42%. Boom Battle Bar, its bar-and-games venues, grew revenue just 2% to £42.8m as UK like-for-like sales fell 8%, tracking a wider 9% decline across the competitive-socialising sector, while increases to National Insurance and the National Living Wage squeezed its site margins to 17% from 18%.

Management has made over £2m of annualised site-level cost savings and launched a further £1m head-office savings programme, and refinanced its debt through a new £20m revolving credit facility with HSBC. Net debt, excluding lease liabilities, rose to £5.9m from £4.9m. Chairman James van den Bergh said: “It is fair to say that 2026 was a year of resilience rather than progress.”

The board struck a more upbeat note on the outlook, pointing to December business-to-business bookings up 15% year-on-year and reiterating that full-year performance remains in line with market expectations.